Computer networks implement varying levels of security to protect the network from unauthorized data access or interception. An open network has limited or reduced security measures, while a closed network implements strict security measures and limits access to privileged users.
For example, an open network may allow users access to internet connectivity and other applications such as e-mail, web services, and external file transfer. A closed network may block or restrict internet connectivity, e-mail, web services, and other communications external to the closed network. The closed network may store sensitive information that is not generally available to the general public, such as financial records, personnel records, trade secrets, and other industry or company secrets, for example. Closed networks may be used by government agencies, intelligence communities, financial institutions, and commercial applications, for example.
Databases updated on an open network may require similar updates on the closed network. Synchronization of data on the open and closed networks provides data consistency for purposes of storage, usage, comparison, and/or analysis. Such data may be stored in servers, personal computers, phones, networking hardware (modems, hubs, switches, nodes), mobile devices, machinery, vehicles, etc. Transferring data from an open network to a closed network may introduce risk at the closed network of exposure to malicious code or content from the transmitting open network. Further, the risk of service attacks and system and/or data corruption is increased when the closed network receives data from an open network. Bi-directional communication between the closed network and open network may increase the likelihood of sensitive data leaking from the closed network to the open network.
Open and closed networks are often physically isolated, thereby limiting the ability to transfer data between the networks. To sync data in open and closed networks in some conventional systems, data from the open network is copied to a portable physical storage device, such as a CD, DVD, or thumb drive, and manually transferred from the storage device to a database or other device on the closed network. The use of portable storage devices for such data transfer is both inefficient and time-consuming, particularly in systems where the databases on the open network are updated frequently.